Life after Sendong: ‘A place we can now call home’

MANILA, Philippines – Survivors remember the terror of the rapidly rising waters as if it was yesterday. On December 16, 2011, tropical storm Sendong struck Mindanao just before midnight. The torrential rain and flooding that ensued laid to waste the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan. Families were displaced, loved ones were lost, and homes were destroyed.

Left with nothing but the clothes on their backs, thousands struggled to survive the aftermath of the typhoon.

The Adriano family was just one of the many left homeless by Sendong, their predicament made all the more heartrending as Edwin Adriano suffered a stroke a day before the typhoon hit. 

With prayers, determination, and support from the community, the Adrianos, three years later, have risen from the tragedy. 

Home is now a modest, 2-storey house in Xavier Ecoville, a community funded by a grant made by San Miguel Corporation.

In 2012, the company committed P550 million to housing projects in Cagayan de Oro, Bukidnon, Negros Oriental and Iligan, for families displaced by Typhoon Sendong. As of mid-2014, over 4,000 homes have been turned over to beneficiaries. Through these efforts, thousands of families, among them the Adrianos, are getting back on their feet. – Rappler.com

Source: Final Report on the Effects and Emergency Management re Tropical Storm “SENDONG” (Washi)  

Video credits: 

Associate Producer: Dindin Reyes, Researcher: Nico Bagsic, Cameramen: Jippy Pascua, Adrian Portugal, Visual Editor: Exxon Ruebe, Scoring: videoblocks.com

Special thanks to Habitat for Humanity, Philippines – Cagayan De Oro, Xavier EcoVille and Corpus Christi School, Cagayan de Oro